What are we waiting for? Celebrities to conduct a campaign or to endorse Sun to utilize the benefit of vitamin D? Are we waiting for the government to imply a rule to just simply sit in Sun for 30 to 45 mins? Are we waiting for the Sun to endorse marketing companies or influencers to promote its beneficial effects? Or organizations to permeate fear for the natural source of vitamin D? The practices like luxuriating in packed food and preservatives, consuming ready-made nutrition tablets to fulfill the vacuum of nutritive value, requesting doctors to add Vitamin -D sachets in the prescriptions to cover up the negligence are the various scenarios that we often come across nowadays. This article will guide you about all that is requisite to know about Vitamin D.
Why it is requisite to know about Vitamin D?
Vitamin D source is abundant, and it does not differentiate the religion, race, caste, and gender. Haha! Yes, it does not discriminate as it does not require money, a special quota, or preferences from benefiting you to stay healthy. Vitamin D does not solemnly work to keep you healthy but its deficiency can definitely be the reason make you unhealthy. So, what if you benefit yourself from all the vitamins but neglect vitamin D? What if you take all the antioxidants and forget about the most easily obtained Vitamin D? Have you ever wondered why something called a ‘Sun-bath’ had to come into existence?
Imagine, the abundances of Vitamin D and still the prevailing diseases on the globe because of its deficiency! The knowledge about vitamin D is significant for it can
- Vitamin D is proven beneficial in the case of Flu and cold, in spite of vaccines and tablets.
- Vitamin D is proven to be preventing the risk of cardiac diseases.
- Vitamin D helps prevent cases of neurological origination.
- Vitamin D prevents us from chronic diseases like cancer, hypertension, coronary artery blockages, and neurological diseases like multiple sclerosis.
- Vitamin D is required to make your bones strong.
There are multiple reasons why you should know that vitamin D is important for our basic functions. In India, giving an infant a Sun shower is a ritual so that his growth is constant and bones become strong.
Sources of Vitamin D
Vitamin D can be obtained from the Sun and dietary sources.
SUNLIGHT- Vitamin D is synthesized by the body after the rays of the sun fall on the skin. The Sunrays comprise UV rays that are essential for the process. Various factors like Melanin content of the skin, application of the skin cream, and pollution that rule the basis of the utilization of the UV rays by the skin. People who are dark skin have more melanin and so UV rays get filtered.
FOOD– Vitamin D is rich in food of animal origins like egg, milk, butter, and cheese. Fish liver oil is rich in vitamin D. For the vegetarian population food fortified with vitamin D is the major source of Vitamin D. Mushroom maintains its status of being a prime source of Vitamin D for vegetarians. There are various food items you can check before you buy from the store if it is fortified with Vitamin D. These items can be tofu, cereals, oatmeals, cow’s milk, other dairy products like cheese, and yogurt, and many more!
How do we Prevent Vitamin D deficiency?
Prevention of any occurrences can only be done if people become aware of how easy it is to prevent a condition and what it is costing them. Vitamin D levels influence the absorption of calcium from food. Imagine taking food items rich in calcium but low Vitamin D levels become the cause of your low calcium levels. Vitamin D is important for your bones to grow stronger. At an early age group, the end of bones is into parts that join to form weight-bearing joints as the child grows up. There is deposition and resorption of calcium, phosphorus, and vitamin D while the formation of the bones. Various approaches that can play a role in the case of prevention of deficiency-
- Educating people about the sources of vitamin D.
- Sun is the abundant and most inexpensive source of vitamin D. Parents should expose their infants to the early morning sun rays.
- Sharing knowledge about the fortified food items.
- Physical exercise in the early morning sun rays.
- The elderly can rest on the chair, kept on the verandah.
- Those who have vitamin D levels insufficient should consult their doctor for proper dosages of supplements. A deficiency can be the reason for their muscle weakness and aches.
Dr. Hahnemann calls it Pseudo-Chronic Disease- Vitamin D, know all that is requisite
(Vitamin D deficiency is seen in 90% of the population)
What is Pseudo chronic disease? In the book Organon of Medicine, 6th edition, Aphorism 77 Dr. Hahnemann writes- There are many diseases that are misunderstood as chronic diseases, that person incurs by continuously exposing themselves to the things that are avoidable. Dr. Hahnemann mentions that people who are indulged in the habits of liquor or addictions, undermine their health and make themselves prone to chronic diseases. Abstinence from things that support life like air, water, heat, food, and conscious mental practices can lead to a state of ill-health. Habits of liquor, unhealthy food, faulty nourishments, debauchery, etc. can compromise the immune system of a person. Many of those who live in a marshy area or those who live underground are missing out on open fresh air and sunlight. On the other hand, staying in confined huge houses in an air-conditioned environment invites numerous health issues. Those over-exerting their mind and body without proper rest and recovery are getting far away from health. Ill health due to the above causes can be corrected by following a proper lifestyle that is in harmony with nature, provided there is no history of long-suffering or suppression of previous illnesses.
Taking 30 minutes of daily sunlight can be useful to human beings. Vitamin D gets processed as the sun rays fall on the skin. Urban development should be done keeping in mind that human being is part of nature, related and connected to nature.